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Strict, though not yet statutory, controls over xenotransplantation have been laid down by the British government. They entail applying to a regulatory authority and passing through several other hoops leading to ministerial clearance by the secretary of state for health.

The move coincides with confirmation that a Cambridge based company, Imutran, is within months of applying for a licence to use a pig's liver to provide dialysis until a human organ becomes available. The liver would not be implanted in the body and …